On April 23, 2012, the plaintiff in State of Ohio ex rel. David P. Joyce, Prosecuting Attorney of Geauga County Ohio v. MERSCORP, Inc., et al., N.D. Ohio Case No. 1:11-cv-02474, filed its motion seeking an order certifying the action as a class action, appointing Geauga County as class representative, and appointing plaintiff’s counsel, the New York law firm of Bernstein Liebhard LLP, as class counsel. The plaintiff argues that the case, which the plaintiff is attempting to bring on behalf of all 88 Ohio counties for relief relating to the allegedly unlawful failure of MERS and its member institutions to record millions of mortgages and mortgage assignments throughout Ohio, meets all requirements of Rule 23(a) and that certification is proper under any one of the 3 subsections of Rule 23(b). The plaintiff hopes to persuade the court that the MERS/member institution policy concerning recordation of mortgages and assignments is a “common scheme or course of conduct” that has given rise to claims “ideally suited for class certification.”

The Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to be filing charges related to the sale of mortgage-linked securities against more Wall Street firms. These should hopefully conclude the various probes arising out of the financial meltdown, at least in the near term.

“It’s fair to say we’re not at the end,” said Kenneth Lench, chief of the structured and new products unit in the SEC enforcement division in a recent interview with the Financial Times. “There will be a handful of additional cases, I believe, over the next several months.”

The news will affect all the banks (NYSEARCA:KBE) involved in the mortgage debacle: …